Microsoft Unveiled Kiswahili for Microsoft Translator

It’s weird how Kenyans dissociate themselves from Kiswahili. Everybody wants to use heavy English words so that people can measure their mind masculinity. Article 7 of the Constitution of Kenya 2010 recognizes Kiswahili as both National and official language in Kenya. In addition, Kiswahili is spoken by up to 150 million people throughout eastern Africa including Tanzania, Kenya, Uganda, Rwanda, Burundi, Mozambique and the Democratic Republic of Congo.

Microsoft would like to make things easier for everybody through Kiswahili for Microsoft translator. The company launched Kiswahili text translation which is the first African language to be supported by the company’s automatic translation service, Microsoft Translator.

“Adding Kiswahili brings us one step closer to our ultimate goal—permanently breaking down the language barriers that separate us by allowing people to translate anything, anywhere, at any time.  Kiswahili speakers in East Africa and around the globe now have access to a wider range of information and culture, and can interact with speakers of the 50 languages supported by Microsoft Translator. What’s more, speakers of these languages now also have direct access to the rich history and culture of Kiswahili speakers far and wide.

Through the new translation system, governments in the region will be able to make documents and information available at virtually no cost. In addition, both government and non-governmental organizations will be able to quickly communicate with locals, and most importantly, people will be able to communicate back and forth across borders for both business and personal purposes.” Microsoft’s Kenya Country Manager Kunle Awosika said.

The translation system was created in collaboration with Translators without Borders, a non-governmental organization whose mission is to increase access to knowledge through humanitarian translations. Translators without Borders facilitates the transfer of knowledge from one language to another by creating and managing a community of NGOs who need translations and professional, vetted translators who volunteer their time to help.

Microsoft being the leading platform and productivity company for the mobile-first, cloud-first world, has made it possible to translate English to Kiswahili throughout the Microsoft Translator ecosystem, thus empowering individuals and organizations through fast and cost-effective translation.The translation system aims at increasing access to knowledge as well as encouraging intercultural communication by creating new language systems.

Microsoft Translator is integrated into many Microsoft and partner products including Bing, Microsoft Office, (Word, Word Online, PowerPoint, Excel, Outlook, Publisher, OneNote, and Visio), SharePoint, Cortana, and Yammer. It also has a full suite of apps for PCs and mobile devices including Windows, Windows Phone, Android and Android Wear, and iPhone and Apple Watch that enables communication across language barriers in nearly any scenario that requires timely and cost effective translation.

The Microsoft Translator Web Widget enables individuals and organizations to easily add multi-language support to their websites at no cost. Kiswahili will also be available as an instant messaging language in Skype for Windows Desktop for real-time communication around the world.In addition, developers will be able to integrate Kiswahili translation into their own products and apps through the Microsoft Translator API. Is you have been struggling with some English words or Kiswahili, Kiswahili for Microsoft translator has your back.

 

Erick Vateta564 Posts

--- Erick Vateta is a lawyer by training, poet, script and creative writer by talent, a model, and tech enthusiast. He covers International tech trends, data security and cyber attacks.

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